£^ 


973»7L63  Henry,    David  W 

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1^^^^*^  Abraham   Lincoiin 


LINCOLN  ROOM 

UNIVERSITY  OF  ILLINOIS 
LIBRARY 


MEMORIAL 

the  Class  of  1901 

founded  by 

HARLAN  HOYT  HORNER 

and 

HENRIETTA  CALHOUN  HORNER 


Abraham  Lincoln 


UBRARY 
UnBOlt  Wefncri'*!  University 


An  Address  Delivered  By 

HON.  DAVID  W.  HENRY 

Before  Blinn  Camp  No.  82,  Sons  of  Veterans 

Terre  Haute,  Indiana 

February  12,  1925 


Abraham  Lincoln 


An  Address  Delivered  By 

HON.  DAVID  W.  HENRY 

Before  Blinn  Camp  No.  82,  Sons  of  Veterans 

Terre  Haute,  Indiana 

February  12,  1925 


6n\ 


ABRAHA3I  LINCOLN 


It  has  been  the  custom  for  several  years  with  Blinn  Camp  No.  42,  Sons 
of  Veterans,  to  observe  the  anniversary  of  the  birthday  of  Abraham  Lincoln, 
February  12th,  with  an  entertainment  and  banquet,  to  which  each  member 
is  privileged  to  invite  as  his  guest  some  survivor  of  the  Civil  War.  On  the 
occasion  of  this  anniversary,  February  12th,  1925,  the  main  event  of  the 
evening  was  a  naddress  on  "Abraham  Linocln,"  by  Hon.  David  W.  Henry, 
himself  the  son  of  a  Civil  War  veteran,  and  a  member  of  Blinn  Camp.  Mr. 
Henry  spoke  as  follows: 

MR.  CHAIRMAN,  FELLOW  MEMBERS,  SONS  OF  VETERANS: 

To  keep  alive  the  love  of  our  country  we  do  well  to  go  over  some 
of  the  scenes  our  sires  fought  for,  and  the  principles  they  died  for, 
with  their  great  and  immortal  commander. 

I  saw  a  cartoon.  A  picture  of  a  scene  one  hundred  and  sixteen 
years  ago.  Two  old  fellows  down  in  Kentucky,  dressed  like  back- 
woodsmen. 

One  said  to  the  other,  "What's  happened  around  here?" 

The  other  said,  "Nothing's  happened  around  here.  A  boy  baby 
was  born  up  at  Tom  Lincoln's  last  night  but  nothing  ever  happens 
around  here." 

Sixty-four  years  ago  we  were  divided  into  two  hostile  sections 
over  an  issue  that  had  to  be  fought  out.  It  was  fought  out  by 
courageous,  fearless,  honest  men  on  both  sides,  on  fields  of  blood  amid 
the  thunder  of  battle.  To  both  sides  it  was  final.  The  last  survivor 
on  the  firing  lines  in  a  very  few  years  will  be  gathered  to  his  fathers. 

We  are  to  consider  one  of  the  great  characters  in  that  war.  He 
belongs  to  no  party  but  to  the  world.  In  life  he  was  an  American.  He 
is  an  American  no  longer. 

His  praises  were  multiplied  by  those  living  then  and  those  born 
since  that  April  evening  sixty  years  ago  when  the  pistol  shot  rang 
through  Ford's  theatre. 

Statesmen  of  every  land  and  clime  have  been  students  of  his  in- 
tellectual genius.  Search  has  been  made  for  every  scrap  of  paper 
upon  which  he  wrote.  In  the  congressional  library  alone  there  are 
more  than  three  thousand  volumes. 

Of  the  actual  historical  characters  we  know  but  little  about  their 
personalities.  Washington,  Adams  and  Jefferson  are  only  steel  en- 
gravings. We  have  got  so  far  away  from  them  that  we  almost  forget 
they  were  human  beings. 

But  we  seem  to  be  acquainted  with  Lincoln.  He  had  no  college 
nor  university,  nor  diploma.  He  had  no  education  nor  social  ad- 
vantage, nor  friends  influential,  nor  wealth  to  aid  him. 

3 


His  history  is  the  simple  annals  of  the  poor.  He  stands  alone.  He 
had  no  fellows  and  he  has  no  successors.  He  was  history's  most 
startling  wonder.  Born  in  the  Blue-grass  state.  At  the  age  of  seven 
his  father  brought  him  to  Hoosierdom  the  same  year  that  Indiana  be- 
came a  state  which  had  65,000  people,  not  as  many  as  Terre  Haute  has 
today. 

He  lost  his  greatest  friend — his  mother — when  he  was  ten.  Like 
all  the  great,  her  teachings  were  in  his  mind  even  to  manhood.  Her 
grave  is  on  the  hillside  looking  down  upon  the  little  town  of  Lin- 
coln City  and  was  marked  by  a  simple  slab  until  Mr,  James  Stude- 
baker  of  South  Bend,  erected  a  shaft  to  her  memory.  On  this  shaft 
are  four  words — the  most  precious  tongue  can  tell  or  pen  can  write: 

"MOTHER  OF  ABRAHAM  LINCOLN" 

He  once  wrote  in  a  letter,  "All  I  am  and  all  I  hope  to  be,  I  owe 
to  my  dear  mother." 

He  once  said,  "I  never  went  to  school  more  than  six  months  in  my 
life."  His  family  were  so  poor  that  they  couldn't  afford  candles  to 
read  at  night.  In  a  log  cabin,  in  front  of  a  big  fireplace,  he  would 
lie  down  flat  on  the  floor,  his  book  in  front  of  him,  his  head  upon  his 
hands,  he  studied. 

Over  and  over  again  he  read  his  library  through  and  through. 
This  library  consisted  of  the  Bible,  Life  of  Washington,  Aesop's 
Fables,  and  Pilgrim's  Progress.  On  a  wooden  shovel  for  a  slate  and 
a  piece  of  charcoal  for  a  pencil  he  figured  to  the  "rule  of  three." 

One  time  he  borrowed  Weem's  Life  of  Washington  from  a  Mr. 
Crawford.  The  book  was  rained  on  and  damaged.  Having  no  money 
to  pay  for  it  he  took  it  back  and  told  all  about  it  and  said  he  would 
work  it  out.  "Well,  Abe,"  said  Mr.  Crawford,  "as  it's  you  I  won't  be 
hard  on  you;  come  over  and  pull  fodder  for  three  days  and  we'll  call 
our  accounts  even." 

He  composed  verses.    One  of  these: 

"Good  boys  who  to  their  books  apply, 
Will  all  be  great  men  by  and  by." 

On  the  fiy  leaf  of  his  school  book  in  his  fourteenth  year  he  wrote: 
"Abraham  Lincoln,  his  hand  and  pen, 
He  will  be  good  but  god  knows  When." 

His  knowledge  of  the  use  of  capitals  was  defective  for  this  couplet 
shows  "God"  to  commence  with  a  small  "g"  and  the  word  "when"  to 
commence  with  a  capital  "W". 

In  1830  when  twenty-one  he  moved  with  his  father  to  Illinois.  He 
had  grown  to  manhood  and  before  leaving  the  last  home  of  his  mother 

4 


lie  put  on  a  wooden  slab  the  initials,  "N.  H,  L."  and  placed  it  securely 
at  the  head  of  the  grave. 

In  1831  on  his  second  trip  to  New  Orleans  he  witnessed  for  the 
first  time  the  chaining  together  and  whipping  of  slaves.  Saw  the  separa- 
tion of  husband  and  wife,  parent  and  child,  when  whole  families  were 
sold  into  slavery.  He  saw  a  beautiful  mulatto  girl  sold  at  auction. 
He  said  to  John  Hanks,  "By  God,  if  I  ever  get  a  chance  to  hit  that 
institution,  I'll  hit  it  hard,  John." 

He  went  into  the  Blackhawk  War  and  was  elected  Captain.  This 
is  a  changing  world  and  not  very  big,  for  while  in  camp  near  the  site  of 
the  present  town  of  Dixon  he  met  Lieut.  Colonel  Zachary  Taylor,  the 
same  who  was  Captain  at  the  battle  of  our  Fort  Harrison.  He  met 
Lieut.  Jefferson  Davis  who  was  afterwards  President  of  the  Confeder- 
acy and  whom  Lincoln's  men  captured  when  he  was  fleeing.  He  met 
Lieut.  Robert  Anderson,  the  same  officer  who  was  to  command  the 
first  battle  whose  guns  electrified  the  north  at  Fort  Sumter.  When  they 
met  in  Washington  Lincoln  said  to  him,  "Major,  do  you  remember  of 
having  met  me  before?"  "No,  Mr.  President,  I  have  no  rcoUection." 
Lincoln  said,  "My  memory  is  better  than  yours,  you  mustered  me  into 
the  service  of  the  United  States  in  1832  at  Dixon's  Ferry  in  the  Black- 
Iiawk  War." 

At  twenty-three  he  was  a  candidate  for  the  legislature  and  de- 
feated. But  in  his  home  precinct  of  the  208  votes  cast  he  received 
all  but  three.  This  was  his  only  defeat  at  the  hands  of  the  people. 
In  running  against  Douglas  he  received  a  majority  of  the  popular 
vote  in  the  State  of  Illinois.  His  first  speech  in  that  campaign  was 
iDrief  and  I  quote  it: 

"Gentlemen,  fellow  citizens:  I  presume  you  all  know  who 
I  am.  I  am  humble  Abraham  Lincoln.  I  have  been  solicited 
by  my  friends  to  become  a  candidate  for  the  legislature.  My 
politics  are  short  and  sweet  like  the  old  woman's  dance.  I 
am  in  favor  of  a  national  bank.  I  am  in  favor  of  the  Internal 
Improvement  system,  and  of  a  high  protective  tariff.  These 
are  my  sentiments  and  political  principles.  If  elected,  I  shall 
be  thankful;  if  not,  it  will  be  all  the  same  to  me" 

After  his  defeat  he  turned  to  business.  Like  Patrick  Henry  he  kept 
A  store  and  like  Patrick  Henry  he  failed.  His  partner  drank  too  much 
and  he  read  books  and  told  too  many  stories.  Lincoln  assumed  the 
debts  of  the  firm,  the  last  of  which  he  paid  in  1848. 

Lincoln  at  the  age  of  twenty-four  was  elected.  In  1836  he  was 
again  elected.  In  the  session  of  1837  when  twenty-eight  years  old, 
he  began  his  anti-slavery  work  which  twenty-six  years  afterward 
ended   finally   in   the   Proclamation   of   Emancipation.     He   and   Dan 

5 


stone  were  the  only  two  members  of  the  legislature  who  signed     a 
•protest  against  slavery  in  that  session. 

When  a  boy  he  attended  a  trial  at  Boonville,  Indiana.  He  con- 
ceived the  idea  of  being  a  lawyer.  He  went  home  and  dreamed  of 
courts. 

At  thirty-two  he  bought  a  second-hand  copy  of  Blackstone  and 
began  to  study  law. 

Then  he  sought  out  his  old  time  friend  and  fellow  soldier,  John  T. 
Stewart,  who  was  a  prosperous  lawyer,  and  loaned  him  law  books. 
He  lived  at  New  Salem,  fourteen  miles  from  Springfield.  When  he 
read  one  book  he  took  it  back  and  got  another.  Afterwards  he  was 
offered  a  partnership  by  Stewart. 

Speed  in  speaking  of  his  entry  into  Springfield  says,  "He  rode  into 
town  on  a  borrowed  horse  without  any  earthly  goods  except  a  pair  of 
saddle-bags  and  two  or  three  law  books  and  some  clothes.  He  set 
the  saddle-bags  on  the  counter.  Mr.  Speed  kept  a  store.  Lincoln 
wanted  to  buy  the  furniture  for  a  single  bed  and  when  he  learned 
that  the  whole  outfit  for  the  bed  would  cost  $17.00  he  said: 

"That's  cheap  enough,  but  small  as  the  price  is,  I  am  unable  to 
pay  it.  If  you  will  give  me  credit  till  Christmas  time,  and  my  ex'peri- 
ment  as  a  lawyer  succeeds,  I  will  pay  you  then." 

"Well,"  said  Speedy  "suppose  you   don't  succeed." 

"If  I  fail,  I  do  not  know  that  I  can  ever  pay  you,"  said  Lincoln. 

The  sad  tone  of  his  voice  attracted  Mr.  Speed  and  he  said  to  him. 

"I  think  I  can  suggest  a  plan  by  which  you  can  avoid  the  debt  and 
at  the  same  time  attain  your  end." 

"Do  you  really  think  so,"  said  Lincoln,  his  face  brightening. 

"Yes,"  said  Speed,  "I  have  a  large  room  with  a  double  bed  up- 
stairs which  you  are  welcome  to  share  with  me." 

"Where  is  the  room?"  said  Lincoln. 

"Upstairs,"  said  Speed. 

He  took  the  saddle-bags  upstairs,  set  them  on  the  floor  and  came 
down  looking  very  happy.     He  exclaimed,  "Well  Speed,  I've  moved." 

Thus  he  began  his  life  as  a  lawyer  in  Springfield. 

In  1846  he  ran  for  congress  against  the  celebrated  Circuit  rider, 
Peter  Cartwright,  whom  you  have  all  read  about. 

By  the  way  I  am  reminded  of  a  story  which  happened  in  this  cam- 
paign. Lincoln  attended  the  preaching  of  Cartwright  one  evening 
after  having  spoken   in   the   afternoon.     Cartwright  saw   him   in  the 

6 


audience.  After  his  sermon  the  preacher  called  upon  all  who  wanted 
to  go  to  Heaven  to  stand  up.  All  arose  but  Lincoln.  Then  the 
preacher  called  for  all  who  didn't  want  to  go  to  Hell  to  stand  up. 
Lincoln  didn't  stand  up.  Cartwright  exclaimed,  "I'm  surprised  to  see 
Abe  Lincoln  sitting  back  there  and  if  he  don't  want  to  go  to  Heaven  nor 
escape  Hell  will  he  tell  us  where  he  does  want  to  go."  Lincoln  arose 
slowly  and  replied,  "I'm  going  to  Congress." 

In  this  congress  he  met  most  of  the  celebrated  men.  In  the 
House  was  John  Quincy  Adams,  Caleb  B.  Smith,  Richard  W.  Thompson 
of  Indiana,  and  Alexander  H.  Stephens,  afterwards  Vice-Presi- 
dent of  the  Confederacy.  Stephens  said  of  Lincoln,  "He  and  Lincoln 
were  in  Congress  together  and  Lincoln  was  careful  as  to  his  manner, 
awkward  in  his  speech  but  was  possessed  of  a  very  strong,  clear, 
vigorous  mind.     He  had  no  model.     He  illustrated  by  story." 

In  the  Senate  Was  Daniel  Webster,  John  A.  Dix,  Simon  Cameron, 
John  C.  Calhoun,  and  Jefferson  Davis. 

The  most  important  act  of  Lincoln  was  the  introduction  of  a  bill 
to  abolish  slavery  in  the  District  of  Columbia.  It  was  while  in  con- 
gress that  Colonel  Thompson  and  Lincoln  first  met.  Thompson 
represented  the  Terre  Haute  and  Lincoln  the  Springfield  district. 
Thompson  having  been  in  congress  before  was  better  acquainted  with 
the  congressmen  and  the  people  of  Washington.  Both  being  west- 
ern men  they  naturally  became  attached  to  each  other.  This  friend- 
ship lasted  until  the  death  of  Lincoln.  Their  terms  expired  on  March 
3,  1849,  and  both  went  to  their  homes. 

Lincoln  sought  the  appointment  of  Commissioner  of  the  Gen- 
eral Land  Office  and  wrote  Colonel  Thompson  the  following  letter, 
which   has  never  before  been  published: 

(CONFIDENTIAL) 

Springfield,  111.,  May  25,  1849. 
Col.  R.  W.  Thompson, 

Terre  Haute,  Indiana. 
Dear  Sir: — 

"I  am  about  to  ask  a  favor  of  you,  and  one  which  I  hope  will  not 
cost  you  much,  I  understand  the  General  Land  Office  is  about  to  be 
given  to  Illinois;  and  that  Mr.  Ewing  desires  Justin  Butterfield  of 
Chicago  to  be  the  man.  I  will  not  trouble  you  with  particulars,  but  will 
assure  you  that  the  appointment  of  Mr.  Butterfield  will  be  an  egregious 
political  blunder.  I  believe  it  will  gratify  no  single  Whig  in  the  state, 
except  it  be  Mr.  B.  himself. 

Now  the  favor  I  wish  of  you  is,  that  you  will  write  General  Tay- 
lor at  once,  saying  that  in  your  opinion,  either  I,  OR  THE  MAN  I 
RECOMMEND,  should  be  appointed  to  that  office,  if  anyone  from  lUi- 

7 


nois  shall  be.  I  restrict  my  request  to  Illinois,  because  I  think  it 
probable  you  have  already  recommended  someone,  probably  from  your 
own  state,  and  I  do  not  wish  to  interfere  with  that." 

Yours  truly,  A.  LINCOLN." 

Mr.  Butterlield  got  the  place.  Lincoln  was  then  offered  the  govern- 
orship of  the  state  of  Oregon.  This  he  declined.  If  Lincoln's  request 
had  been  granted  and  his  appointment  had  been  secured  at  the  request 
of  Colonel  Thompson  we  would  not  be  here  celebrating  the  anniver- 
sary of  his  birth.  Had  Lincoln  been  selected  for  this  position  his 
great  character  would  have  been  buried  in  a  small  official  position  and 
he  would  never  have  been  President  of  the  United  States  and  the  map 
of  this  country  might  have  been  changed, 

I  call  attention  to  this  for  the  reason  that  there  seemed  to  be  a 
guiding  hand  holding  Mr.  Lincoln  in  the  background  so  that  he  could 
prepare  for  the  great  struggle  which  was  to  come  like  a  hurricane 
in  this  country  and  he  was  soon  to  make  more  history  than  any  man 
since  Washington.  However,  to  this  poor  struggling  country  lawyer 
this  position  was  an  attractive  one. 

Remember  that  this  letter  was  dated  in  1849.  I  have  another 
letter  written  by  Lincoln  in  1850  a  little  more  than  a  year  after.  In 
closing  he  said: 

"One  part  of  your  letter  induces  me  to  say  that  I  would 
not  now  accept  the  land  office  if  it  were  offered  to  me.  Yours 
as  ever. 

A.  LINCOLN." 

In  1848,  Lincoln  wrote  his  biography,  and  it  was  the  only  history 
of  himself,  written  by  himself,  which  he  then  expected  to  be  printed. 

"Born  Feb.  12,  1809,  in  Hardin  County  Kentucky.  Education  defec- 
tive. Profession,  Lawyer.  Have  been  a  captain  of  a  volunteer  com- 
pany in  Black  Hawk  War.  Also  postmaster  at  a  very  small  office. 
Four  times  member  of  Illinois  Legislature,  and  was  a  member  of  the 
Lower  House  of  Congress."  Yours,  etc , 

A.  LINCOLN." 

In  the  winter  of  1854  the  repeal  of  the  Missouri  Compromise 
aroused  him.  He  could  not  refrain  from  returning  to  politics.  The 
great  barrier  against  the  extension  of  slavery  was  assailed  by  the 
most  powerful  man  in  congress,  Senator  Douglas  who  was  the  author 
of  the  bill  to  repeal  the  Missouri  Compromise. 

To  sum  up  his  position  at  that  time  in  all  his  speeches  he  was  not 
an  abolitionist.  Believed  slavery  was  wrong  but  was  entitled  to  its 
constitutional  rights  and  no  more.  That  the  government  had  no  right 
to  interfere  where  it  then  existed.  He  was  opposed  to  any  further 
extension  into  new  states  and  territories.    It  was  a  call  to  arms. 


At  twenty-three  he  had  formed  an  aversion  to  slavery  and  now 
took  up  the  fight  against  its  extension  and  from  that  time  he  made  up 
his  mind  that  he  would  be  the  next  Senator  from  Illinois  and  wrote 
to  a  friend  of  his: 

"I  would  rather  have  a  full  term  as  U.  S.  Senator  than  the 

Presidency." 

From  that  time  began  his  campaign  against  the  position  of  Sena- 
tor Douglas. 

In  order  to  determine  the  strength  and  position  of  the  man  he 
was  to  attack,  let  us  take  the  measure  of  his  antagonist.  Douglas 
at  twenty  walked  into  the  town  of  Winchester,  Illinois,  and  imme- 
diately entered  upon  a  career  which  hardly  has  a  parallel  in  human 
success.  At  thirty  years  he  had  been  a  member  of  the  Illinois  legis- 
lature, state's  attorney,  register  of  the  land  office,  secretary  of  the 
state  of  Illinois,  judge  of  the  supreme  court  and  was  on  his  way  to 
Washington  to  take  his  seat  in  Congress. 

He  was  re-elected  three  successive  times  to  the  lower  house  and 
was  elected  to  the  United  States  senate  in  1852  and  was  to  beat  Lin- 
oln  in  1858. 

iTwice  in  the  national  convention  of  his  party  he  was  a  candidate 
for  president.  He  had  been  connected  with  all  the  great  measures 
before  congress,  including  the  carrying  through  of  the  measure  that 
chartered  the  Illinois  Central  railroad,  giving  to  it  a  large  grant ,  of 
land.  He  controlled  the  political  patronage  of  Illinois,  which  was  a 
most  formidabe  organization.  You  can  see  that  he  would  be  a  great 
and  dangerous  adversary. 

Remember  and  keep  in  mind  that  Lincoln  had  been  preparing 
for  this  conflict.  He  had  been  aroused  four  years  before  and  in  these 
four  years  he  had  been  energetically  organizing  his  forces  in  every 
part  of  the  state. 

He  was  a  student  of  the  Constitution;  he  knew  the  history  of  his 
government  and  his  party  and  the  history  of  the  Democratic  party. 
He  knew  everything  about  the  public  record  of  Douglas.  He  was  a 
giant  intellectually  and  physically,  and  above  all  things  he  was  a 
political  organizer  and  political  leader. 

Remember  and  keep  in  mind  that  this  conflict  was  confined  to  the 
state  of  Ilinois,  but  when  these  two  great  gladiators  went  into  the 
political  arena,  Illinois  was  no  longer  the  theater  or  this  conflict. 
It  spread  over  all  the  north,  south,  east  and  west,  but  Illinois  was 
the  center  of  the  battle-ground  and  the  presidency  was  to  be  the  final 
winning  stakes. 

There  had  been  great  debates  in  the  old  Continental  Congress. 
Great  debates  in   the  American  Congress  in    1820   and   1821  between 


Webster  and  Hayne  and  Calhoun  on  nullification,  but  the  debates  of 
1858  between  Lincoln  and  Douglas  in  historic  interest  surpassed  them 
jail. 

Douglas  was  so  famous  that  everybody  rushed  to  hear  him.  This 
fact  impressed  Mr.  Lincoln.  He  wanted  to  reach  the  Democrats,  so 
he  challenged  Douglas  to  speak  from  the  same  platform  in  a  series 
of  debates  face  to  face.  Lincoln  met  him  with  a  very  simple  prop- 
osition. "A  house  divided  against  itself  cannot  stand.  I  believe  this 
government  cannot  endure  permanently  half  slave  and  half  free.  I 
do  not  expect  that  the  Union  will  be  dissolved.  I  do  not  expect  that 
it  will  be  divided.     It  will  become  all  one  thing  or  the  other." 

There  were  seven  of  these  debates.  Read  them  and  when  you 
have  closed  the  book  you  will  say  they  were  mighty  giants.  Douglas 
was  elected  by  these  debates  but  they  beat  Douglas  for  the  presi- 
dency two  years  later  and  elected  Lincoln  president. 

In  these  debates  Douglas  traveled  in  state  in  the  private  car  of 
George  B.  McClellan,  at  that  time  an  official  of  the  Illinois  Central 
railroad  company,  and  afterward  a  general  in  the  Union  army.  This 
railroad  was  not  as  friendly  to  Lincoln  and  he  occupied  a  half  seat 
in  a  common  car.  Douglas  spent  money  with  a  lavish  hand.  Lin- 
coln had  none  to  spend. 

!The  slave  aristocracy  of  the  south  made  up  their  minds  that 
they  would  control  this  government.  They  were  successful  when 
Missouri  was  admitted  and  it  was  through  the  influence  of  Henry 
Clay  that  the  Missouri  Compromise  was  made,  that  Missouri  would 
be  admitted  a  slave  state,  that  they  would  concede  all  territory  north 
of  the  south  line  of  Missouri,  or  in  other  words,  north  of  the  parallel 
latitude  30-60  should  be  forever  free,  but  the  south  would  not  keep 
this  agreement  when  it  came  to  the  admission  of  Kansas  and  Ne- 
braska. 

Governor  Wise  of  Virginia  announced  that,  "Slavery 
should  pour  itself  abroad  and  have  no  limit  but  the  south- 
ern ocean." 

When  Pres.ident  Polk  came  to  settle  the  war  with  Mexico,  the 
United  States  minister  at  Mexico  City  refused  to  enter  into  negotia- 
tions that  would  prohibit  slavery  in  the  territory  that  we  were  to 
take  from  Mexico,  and  said: 

"If  the  whole  territory  offered  was  increased  ten  fold 
in  value,  and  covered  a  foot  thick  with  pure  gold  upon  the 
single  condition  that  slavery  should  be  excluded  therefrom 
he  would  not  entertain  the  idea  nor  think  of  communicating 
the  proposition  to  Washington." 

10 


This  condition  of  affairs  brought  on  the  "IRREPRESSIBLE  CON- 
FLICT/' 

This  was  the  condition  of  affairs  when  Mr.  Lincolh  concluded  to 
€nter  politics. 

SLAVERY. 

It  is  well  enough  to  go  hack.  Slavery  was  introduced  into  the 
colonies  by  the  English  in  1772.  Virglinia  petitioned  the  British 
government  to  stop  the  importation  of  slaves.  The  king  was  in 
favor  of  slavery.  At  the  first  congress  in  1774  at  Philadelphia,  Jef- 
ferson presented  a  resolution  declaring,  "The  abolition  of  slavery  is 
the  greatest  object  of  desire  of  these  colonies." 

Be  it  to  the  everlasting  credit  of  Jefferson  that  in  1784  he  advo- 
cated that  slavery  should  not  be  allowed  in  the  new  states  that  were 
I)eing  formed  in  the  west  and  northwest,  and  it  was  nearly  one  hun- 
dred years  before  that  proposition  became  a  law  of  Congress. 

In  1787  as  governor  of  Virginia  he  wrote  an  ordinance  ceding 
the  Northwest  Territory  to  the  United  States  and  in  that  document 
there  was  a  covenant  that  slavery  should  be  forever  forbidden  in. 
the  Northwest  Territory. 

Had  Jefferson's  advice  been  followed  in  all  probability  we  would 
have  never  had  the  Civil  War  because  it  grew  out  of  the  extension 
of  slavery  in  the  new  states.  The  fathers  and  founders  of  this  Re- 
public were  against  slavery  and  in  the  Declaration  of  Independence 
they  la.id  down  the  proposition  that  "all  men  are  created  equal."  It 
was  upon  this  rock  that  Lincoln  stood  when  he  entered  politics. 

Washington  wrote  a  letter  in  which  he  said,  "There  is  no  man 
living  who  wishes  more  sincerely  than  I  do  to  see  a  plan  adopted 
for  the  abolition  of  it."  And  in  his  will  he  provided  for  the  freedom 
of  his  slaves. 

Coming  down  to  after  1830,  let  us  look  at  conditions.  New  Eng- 
land had  the  big  factories  and  they  must  have  cotton  and  cotton 
could  not  be  produced  without  slaves,  so  they  thougiu.  That  money, 
fashion  and  religion  all  combined  to  perpetuate  slavery  because  they 
made  money  out  of  it.  The  first  families  of  the  North  stood  in  with 
the  first  families  of  the  South.  Property  rights  were  involved  and 
property  rights  were  more  sacred  than  human  rights. 

This  was  in  old  Massachusetts  and  while  Boston  was  secure  in 
the  fact  that  she  was  making  money  a  mob  broke  out  near  where  the 
Cradle  of  Liberty  stood.  William  Lloyd  Garrison  was  dragged  down 
the  street  to  be  hung  because  he  published  the  "Liberator."  This 
mob  woke  up  a  young  lawyer.  He  had  descended  from  the  Puritans. 
His    ancestors   had   fought  in   the   Revolution   and   Wendell    Phillips 

11 


was  not  then  an  abolitionist,  but  was  in  favor  of  free  speech  and 
this  led  him  to  take  the  field  for  free  speech.  He  became  an  aboli- 
tionist and  he  and  his  wife  became  social  outlaws  in  society.  In 
Alton,  111.,  Rev.  Elijah  P  .Lovejoy  had  been  killed  by  a  mob  for  pub- 
lishing what  he  believed  against  slavery. 

A  tremor  of  horror  ran  through  the  North.  Not  a  question  of 
slavery  but  free  speech.  Wendell  Phillips  made  a  speech  at  Faneuil 
Hall  on  the  Lovejoy  murder  and  that  speech  made  abolition  respect- 
able in  New  England,  and  from  that  time  on  he  gave  his  life  to  this 
cause.  He  was  followed  by  Charles  Sumner,  John  Q.  Adams,  Joshua 
Giddings,  Horace  Greeley,  Fred  Douglas,  George  W.  Curtis,  John  G, 
Whittier,  William  H.  Seward,  Salmon  P.  Chase,  Ben  Butler,  Charles 
Francis  Adams,  William  C.  Bryant,  John  A.  Dix  and  old  Ben  Wade. 
The  momentum  increased  like  a  prairie  fire.  The  man  who  was  to 
be  their  leader  in  after  years  was  none  other  than  Lincoln. 

In  the  long  years  after  these  days  and  times,  this  abolition 
movement  is  almost  forgotten.  Henry  Watterspn  said,  "The  South 
never  had  a  better  friend  than  Lincoln."  John  B.  Gordon,  the  great 
confederate  leader,  said,  "We  know  now  that  slavery  was  a  gigantic 
mistake." 

In  1860  at  the  Charleston  convention  the  Democrats  of  eight  slave 
states  withdrew  from  that  convention  and  afterward  met  at  Rich- 
mond and  nominated  Breckenridge.  The  Democratic  party  met  at 
Baltimore  and  nominated  Douglas.  Lincoln  was  nom.lnated  at  Chi- 
cago. He  remained  at  home  when  the  balloting  was  going  on.  When 
he  read  the  telegram  announcing  his  nomination  he  didn't  stop  to  re- 
ceive the  congratulations  of  those  around  him,  but  said,  "There  is  a- 
little  woman  down  at  our  house  who  will  be  glad  to  hear  this.  I'll 
go  down  and  tell  her." 

I  need  not  go  over  the  campaign.  It  had  no  parallel  in  the 
history  of  this  country.  On  the  7th  of  November  the  votes  showed 
that  Lincoln  had  been  elected  and  would  be  inaugurated  in  four 
months.  South  Carolina  rejoiced  over  his  election  with  bonfires, 
because  it  furnished  a   pretext  for  secession. 

One  southern  state  after  another  went  out  of  the  Union.  South 
Carolina  was  followed  by  Mississippi,  Georgia,  Florida,  Alabama, 
Louisiana  and  Texas  and  on  the  4th  day  of  February  seven  states 
met  at  Montgomery  and  formed  a  government  with  Jefferson  Davis 
as  president  and  Alexander  H.  Stephens,  vice-president.  Davis  was 
educated  at  West  Point  at  the  expense  of  the  government  which  he 
sought  to  destroy.  He  was  an  imperious,  high  strung  fellow.  Secre- 
tary of  War  under  Pierce,  then  United  States  senator. 

Stephens  was  a  different  kind  of  a  fellow.     He  was   against  se- 

12 


cession.    He  asked  the  members  of  the  Georgia  legislature  what  rea- 
son they  could  give  for  secession.    He  told  them, 

"When  the  south  demanded  slave  trade,  the  north 
yielded;  when  they  demanded  three-fifths  representation  for 
their  slaves  the  north  yielded.  The  north  yielded  again  and 
again.  You  will  by  this  unwise  act  have  your  slaves  taken 
from  you  by  a  universal  emancipation." 
This  prophecy  should  have  been  listened  to. 

On  the  11th  of  February  with  his  family  and  personal  friends 
Lincoln  left  his  home  at  Springfield  for  Washington.  If  you  will 
read  his  farewell  speech  to  his  neighbors  when  leaving  his  home 
there  will  be  no  doubt  in  your  mind  but  that  he  was  a  Christian. 
He  once  said  to  a  congressman. 

"When  a  church  shall  inscribe  on  its  altar,  as  its  sole 
qualification  for  membership,  'Thou  shalt  love  the  Lord  thy 
God,  with  all  thy  heart,  with  all  thy  mind  and  thy  neighbor 
as  thyself,'  that  church  shall  I  join  with  all  my  soul." 

He  was  a  Christian  but  not  orthodox.  He  believed  in  the  Bible 
but  not  in  creeds  and  dogmas  and  said  of  the  Bible, 

"It's  the  best  gift  which  God  ever  gave  to  man."  It  was  the 
cornerstone  of  his  faith,  and  he  followed  in  the  footsteps  of  the 
Nazarene. 

On  his  way  he  passed  through  Indiana,  Ohio,  New  Jersey,  New 
York  and  Pennsylvania.  A  plot  to  assassinate  him  when  he  passed 
through  Baltimore  was  discovered  by  Allan  Pinkerton,  the  noted  de- 
tective. The  wires  were  cut.  A  special  train  was  hurriedly  made 
up  at  Harrisburg  and  went  through  Baltimore  twelve  hours  ahead 
of  time.  He  was  met  by  Senators  Washburn  and  Seward  on  his 
arrival  at  Washington  and  taken  to  the  Willard  Hotel. 

He  delivered  his  inaugural  address  and  when  he  removed  his 
hat  to  face  the  multitude  Douglas  reached  out  and  took  his  hat  and 
held  it.  Douglas  called  at  the  White  House  and  tendered  his  ser- 
vices. Lincoln  told  him  to  go  back  to  Illinois  and  influence  his  friends 
to  hold  to  the  Union.  Four  years  later  they  joined  each  other  on 
"fame's  eternal  camping  ground."  Douglas  started  back  to  his  home, 
made  speeches  on  the  way.  At  Springfield  he  spoke  to  the  people  and 
said, 

"So  long  as  there  was  a  hope  of  a  peaceful  solution  I 
prayed  and  implored  for  a  compromise  and  have  failed.  There 
is  but  one  thing  to  do,  rally  around  the  flag,  forget  all  party 
and  remember  only  your  country.  THE  SHORTEST  ROAD 
TO  PEACE  IS  THE  MOST  TREMENDOUS  PREPARATION 
F'OR  WAR." 

13 


From  Springfield  he  went  to  Chicago  and  in  the  great  "Wig- 
wam" where  Lincoln  was  nominated  repeated  his  appeal  for  the  Unidn 
and  said, 

"THERE  CAN  BE  NO  NEUTRALS  IN  THIS  WAR,  ONLY 
PATRIOTS  AND  TRAITORS." 

He  was  taken  ill  and  at  the  age  of  forty-eight  died.  I  never  look 
on  the  shaft  erected  to  his  memory  on  the  lake  front  in  Chicago 
but  I  take  off  my  hat  in  veneration  to  one  of  the  greatest  men  of  this 
western  country. 

What  did  Lincoln  inherit  from  Buchanan?  This  country  was 
like  a  town  which  had  been  struck  with  a  cyclone  and  but  for  loyal 
old  General  Scott  treason  would  have  had  its  way.  The  treasury 
was  empty.  The  army  and  navy  scattered.  The  slave  party  had  ruled 
for  half  a  century  and  it  was  in  rebellion.  The  officers  of  the  army 
were  mostly  Southern  men  who  had  been  educated  at  the  expense 
of  the  government.  They  went  with  the  South  except  Generals  Scott, 
Thomas,  Meade  and  Farragut.  Other  generals  had  to  be  trained  from 
civil  life  with  the  exception  of  Grant,  Sherman  and  others.  The  con- 
spiracy had  been  preparing  for  thirty  years.  The  administration  had 
acted  as  a  wrecking  crew,  wrecking  the  government,  since  the  elec- 
tion of  Lincoln.  Buchanan,  a  weak  old  man,  didn't  try  to  stop  them. 
Some  of  his  cabinet  went  into  the  Confederate  cabinet  at  Richmond. 

From  the  day  that  Lincoln  took  the  oath  of  office  he  was  the 
biggest  man  in  his  cabinet,  but  not  one  of  them  but  thought  he  was 
bigger  than  his  master  and  those  who  disagreed  with  him  were 
usually  brought  to  his  views  because  of  his  logical  manner  of  han- 
dling a  subject. 

Here  is  a  sample: 

At  one  time  Lincoln  had  thought  out  a  policy.  He  called 
his  cabinet  together  and  carefully  read  it  over  to  them,  pre- 
senting his  policy  in  detail.  It  was  discussed  freely.  After 
the  discussion  he  proceeded  to  put  it  to  a  vote.  "All  in  favor 
of  this  policy  will  signify  by  saying  'aye'.  Lincoln  voted 
"aye"  and  was  the  only  one  who  did. 

Lincoln  studied  a  Little  bit,  and  finally  said,  "Those  op- 
posed will  say  'no'."  All  of  his  cabinet  voted  "no."  He 
looked  out  of  the  window  quite  a  while,  and  finally  turned 
around  to  the  members  of  the  cabinet  and  said,  "The  ayes 
have  it." 

He  had  mental  giants  in  his  cabinet.  They  were  considered 
authority  on  all  matters.  Stanton  had  the  burden  of  the  war.  He 
was  a  stern  disciplinarian,  but  faithful  to  Lincoln   and  Lincoln  had 

14 


an  abiding  confidence  in  him.    Many  stories  are  told  of  how  Stanton 
dominated  Lincoln: 

On  a  certain  occasion  it  was  related  that  the  president 
was  informed  by  a  furious  friend  of  his  that  the  secretary 
of  war  had  not  only  refused  to  execute  an  order  of  the  presi- 
dent's, but  had  called  him  a  fool  into  the  bargain. 

"Did  Stanton  say  I  was  a  fool?"  inquired  Lincoln. 

"Yes,"  replied  his  friend,  "he  said  you  were  a  blank  blank 
fool.' 

Lincoln  loooked  at  his  friend,  then  out  of  the  window  in 
the  direction  of  the  war  department,  and  said: 

"Well,  if  Stanton  says  I  am  a  blank,  blank  fool,  it  must 
be  so,  for  Stanton  is  nearly  always  right  and  generally  means 
what  he  says.  I  think  I  will  have  to  step  over  and  see  Stan- 
ton." 

In  addition  to  disagreements  in  his  official  family,  the  great  men 
from  all  over  the  country  were  diisagreeing  with  him  and  were  going 
in  delegations  to  advise  him.  To  all  of  them  he  listened  patiently 
and  usually  dismissed  them  with  some   pertinent  illustration. 

He  was  weighted  down  by  the  cares  of  the  war.  Weighted  down 
by  dissensions  in  the  North  and  among  his  own  people.  Disturbed 
by  persons  wanting  favors  and  offices,  but  he  rested  by  doing  some 
kind  act  to  relieve  somebody. 

A  soldier  had  been  turned  down  by  every  one  else  and 
went  to  Lincoln,  who  reproved  the  man  and  sent  him  away. 
After  a  night  of  remorse  Lincoln  entered  his  carriage,  drove 
down  to  the  hotel  and  hunted  the  soldier  up  and  took  him 
in  his  carriage  and  saw  him  through  with  his  troubles. 
Stanton  heard  about  it  and  apologized  to  Lincoln  for  reject- 
ing the  soldier's  appeal. 

"No,  no,"  replied  Lincoln,  "you  did  right  in  adhering  to 
your  rules.  If  we  had  such  a  soft-headed  old  fool  as  I  am  in 
your  place  there  would  be  no  rules  that  the  army  could  de- 
pend upon." 

.  He  thought  he  knew  how  to  deal  with  the  rebellion  but  the  office- 
seekers  demanded  all  of  his  time. 

"I  am,"  he  said,  "like  the  man  so  busy  in  letting  rooms 
in  one  end  of  his  house  that  he  can't  stop  to  put  out  the  fire 
that  as  burning  the   other  end." 

As  time  went  on  the  absorbing  question  was,  freeing  the  slaves. 
What  effect  it  would  have  on  the  border  states  was  a  question.  They 
thought  the   border   states  would  take   a   gradual   emancipation   for 

15 


compensation.     So  in  March,  1862,  in  a  message  to  congress,  Lincoln 

said, 

"In  my  judgment,  gradual,  and  not  sudden,  emancipation 
is  better  for  all.  That  the  United  States  ought  to  co-operate 
with  any  state  which  may  adopt  a  gradual  abolition  of  slav- 
ery by  compensating  them." 

This  proposition  was   denounced.     Roscoe  Conkling,  then  in 
the  house,  said,  "it  was  Like  giving  diluted  milk." 

On  the  12th  of  July,  the  president  invited  members  of  congress 
from  the  border  states  and  begged  them  to  accept  compensation  for 
their  slaves  before  it  was  too  late  to  secure  compensation  and  by 
doing  so  save  the  Union. 

Lincoln  had  two  intimate  friends  in  congress.  They  belonged  to 
opposite  parties,  both  Union  men — John  J.  Crittenden  of  Kentucky 
and  Owen  Lovejoy  of  Illinois,  both  devoted  to  Lincoln,  and  each  had 
Ills  confidence.    Against  emancipation  the  great  Crittenden  said: 

"There  is  a  niche  in  the  temple  of  fame — a  niche  near  to 
Washington.     It  is  in  his  power  to  occupy  a  place  next  to 
Washington— the  FOUNDER  and  PRESERVER  side  by  side." 
Lovejoy,    whose    brother    was    murdered    by    a    mob,    in    answer 
said : 

"I,  too,  have  a  niche  for  Abraham  Lincoln,  but  it  is  in  free- 
dom's holy  fane,  and  not  in  the  blood-besmeared  temple  of 
human  bondage;  not  surrounded  by  slaves,  fetters  and  chains. 
It  is  a  fame  worth  living  for:  aye,  more,  that  is  a  fame  worth 
dying  for." 

On  the  22nd  of  September,  1862,  the  Proclamation  was  published. 
The  final  one  was  issued  on  the  first  of  January  in  1863.  When  the 
paper  was  brought  to  him  by  Seward  to  be  signed,  Lincoln  said, 
"Mr.  Seward,  I  have  been  shaking  hands  all  day,  and  my  right  hand 
is  almost  paralyzed.  If  my  name  ever  gets  into  history  it  will  be 
lor  this  act,  and  my  soul  is  in  it."  Resting  his  arm  a  moment  he 
turned  to  the  table,  took  up  his  pen  and  slowly  and  firmly  wrote, 
^'Abraham  Lincoln."  He  smiled,  handed  the  paper  to  Mr.  Seward  and 
said,  "That  will  do." 

He  had  done  what  Alexander  H.  Stephens  predicted  he  could  do. 

Bells  rang  out  over  all  New  England,  all  New  York,  over  the 
mountains,  over  Pennsylvania  across  the  prairies  over  the  West  to 
and  beyond  the  Rocky  Mountains.  Great  meetings  were  held.  Gov- 
ernors of  the  loyal  states  held  a  meeting  at  Altoona  and  sent  a 
message  of  congratulation. 

Congress  in  December  adopted  a  resolution  sanctioning  it.     Con- 

16 


gratulations  come  pouring  in  from  Great  Britain.  John  Q.  Adams 
away  back  in  1836  had  made  the  statement,  "I  lay  down  this  as  a 
law  of  nations  that  in  case  of  war  the  president  of  the  United  States, 
and  the  commander  of  all  armies,  has  power  to  order  universal 
emancipation  of  the  slaves."  The  right  had  been  claimed  and  exer- 
cised by  Great  Britain  during  the  Revolutionary  War. 

Our  armies  began  to  win  battles.  On  the  4th  of  July  Grant 
captured  Vicksburg  and  opened  up  the  Mississippi  to  its  mouth.  The 
battle  of  Gettysburg  was  fought  and  Lee  was  chased  out  of  the  north 
forever.  The  turn  of  the  tide  in  the  war  had  been  passed  and  on  the 
19th  of  November  of  that  year  Edward  Everett  in  a  great  masterly 
speech  consecrated  the  ground  at  Gettysburg  and  his  speech  was  fol- 
lowed by  a  very  short  speech  by  Lincoln. 

There  are  four  instances  in  the  history  of  the  world  when  great 
deeds  have  been  celebrated.  The  well  known  epitaph  upon  the 
Spartans  who  died  at  Thermopylae;  the  words  of  Demosthenes  on 
those  Greeks  who  fell  at  Marathon;  the  speech  of  Webster  of  those 
who  died  at  Bunker  Hill  and  the  words  of  Lincoln  of  those  who  laid 
down  their  lives  on  the  field  of  Gettysburg. 

Lincoln  turned  to  Everett  and  grasped  his  hand  and  said,  "I 
congratulate  you  on  your  success."  Everett  replied,  "Ah,  Mr.  Presi- 
dent, how  gladly  would  I  exchange  all  of  my  hundred  pages  to  have 
been  the  author  of  your  twenty  lines." 

Lincoln  had  tried  several  generals  and  had  made  little  progress 
along  the  Potomac  for  two  years.  McClellan  was  a  fine  organizer 
and  had  a  fine  army  but  Lincoln  couldn't  get  him  to  fight.  Speak- 
ing of  him  at  one  time  he  said,  "McClellan  is  a  great  man,  a  fine 
engineer,  but  a  stationary  engineer."  Lincoln  had  heard  of  Belmont, 
Fort  Donaldson,  Shilo  and  Vicksburg.  The  name  of  the  commander 
of  these  battles  had  filled  the  land  with  renown  but  was  personally 
unknown  in  Washington.  So  Lincoln  sent  for  him  to  make  him 
Lieutenant  General,  commander  of  all  the  armies. 

He  came  to  a  Washington  hotel  to  register,  a  cigar  in  his  mouth, 
an  old  army  hat  on  his  head,  a  linen  duster  on  his  back  and  was 
told  that  he  could  get  no  room  except  at  the  top  of  the  house,  but 
he  went  on  writing  his  name. 

When  the  startled  clerk  turned  the  register  around  and  read, 
"U.  S.  Grant  and  Son,  Galena,  Illinois,"  he  at  once  assigned  him  to 
the   finest  parlor  in  the   hotel. 

He  went  to  the  White  House,  where  there  was  a  reception  going 
on.  He  was  recognized  by  the  president.  When  parting  from  the 
president  that  evening  he  said,  "This  has  rather  been  the  warmest 
campaign   I    have   witnessed   since   the    war."     He   then   visited    the 

17 


armies  of  the  Potomac  and  returned  to  Washington  for  an  interview 
with  the  president  and  the  secretary  of  war  regarding  the  future 
plans  and  prepared  to  leave  for  the  west.  He  was  told  by  the  presi- 
dent that  Mrs.  Lincoln  wanted  him  to  attend  a  dinner  in  his  honor. 
Grant  said, 

"Mrs.  Lincoln  must  excuse  me.  I  must  be  in  Tennessee 
at  a  given  time."  "But  we  can't  excuse  you,"  said  the  presi- 
dent. "I  appreciate  the  honor  Mrs.  Lincoln  would  do  me," 
said  the  general,  "but  time  is  very  important  and  really,  Mr. 
Lincoln,  I  have  had  enough  of  this  show  business."  General 
Grant  went  west  without  waiting  for  the  dinner. 

After  that  Lincoln  no  longer  troubled  himself  with  the  direction 
of  his  armies. 

Grant,  commander-in-chief.  Sherman  on  his  way  through  the 
solid  south,  "from  Atlanta  to  the  sea,"  with  Meade,  the  hero  of 
Gettysburg,  and  Sheridan,  made  immortal  by  the  poet  in  "Sheridan 
Twenty  Miles  Away." 

In  March,  1865,  Lincoln  went  to  City  Point  on  the  James  river, 
where  he  had  a  conference  with  Grant  and  Sherman.  A  survey  was 
made  of  the  strength  of  all  the  armies  and  it  was  their  judgment 
that  Sherman  with  80,000  men,  as  brave  as  Caesar's  legions,  and  with 
Grant's  army,  Lee  would  have  to  surrender.  Lincoln,  when  told 
"One  more  battle  was  likely  to  occur  before  the  end,"  exclaimed, 
"Must  more  blood  be  shed?  Cannot  this  bloody  battle  be  avoided?" 
Even  when  they  were  consulting,  Sheridan  cut  off  Lee's  chance  to 
escape  and  in  ten  days'  marching  and  fighting  with  Sheridan's  cavalry 
in  the  lead,  Grant's  infantry,  moving  like  a  solid  wall,  finished  the 
campaign. 

Appomattox  came  quickly.  Grant  returned  Lee's  sword.  John- 
son surrendered  to  Sherman.     The  war  was  over. 

There  are  three  great  state  papers  which  mark  the  progress  of 
the  Anglo-Saxon  civilization.  First  is  the  "Magna  Charta"  wrested 
by  the  barons  of  England  from  King  John.  Second,  the  "Declaration 
of  Independence"  and  third,  worthy  to  be  placed  upon  the  tablets 
of  history  with  the  first  two,  is  Abraham  Lincoln  Emancipation  Proc- 
lamation. 

2,800,000  men  to  leave  home  and  family. 

300,000  men  to  die  in  camp  and  battle. 

175,000  men  to  die  in  rebel  prison  dens. 

500,000  men  came  back  diseased  and  wounded  to  live  in  tor- 
ment the  remainder  of  their  lives. 

These  men  marched  and  fought  and  died  at  the  call  of  Lincoln 

18 


and  under  his  command.     They  followed  the   Stars  and   Stripes  and 
captured  the  Stars  and  Bars. 

This  is  what  Emancipation  cost.  We  fought  eight  million  people 
and  four  million  human  beings  changed  their  chains  for  liberty. 

There  is  but  one  other  name  in  American  history  which  can  be 
mentioned  with  Lincoln's  as  that  of  a  peer,  the  name  of  Washing- 
ton. Lincoln  was  as  pure,  as  just,  as  patriotic  as  the  father  of  his 
country.  He  had  more  faith  in  the  people  and  they  had  an  eternal 
confidence  in  him. 

Sitting  in  a  box  in  the  theatre,  watching  a  play  called  "Our 
American  Cousin";  in  the  box  were  the  president  and  Mrs.  Lin- 
coln; back  of  them  were  Miss  Clara  Harris  and  Major  Rathbone. 
Miss  Harris  and  Major  Rathbone  were  lovers.  The  shot  by  a  mis- 
erable person,  who  sent  the  president  to  his  death,  made  the  life  of 
Mrs.  Lincoln  sad  and  melancholy.  The  assassin,  with  the  stain  of 
murder  on  his  soul  and  the  curse  of  the  world  against  him,  with  a 
price  set  upon  his  head,  was  hunted  as  a  wild  beast  until  death  over- 
took Mm  with  the  bullet  of  Boston  Corbett  in  a  burning  building. 

"Flowers  beautified  the  lifeless  remains,  dirges  were  sung,  peo- 
ple's great  hearts  broke  out  into  sobs  and  sighs,  and  so  home  to 
the  prairie  they  bore  him,  whom,  when  first  he  was  called,  the  nation 
knew  him  not.  Who,  mid  the  storm  and  raging  of  those  years  of  the 
Civil  War,  they  had  loved  to   call  father   and  friend." 

Some  years  ago  I  visited  Oak  Ridge  cemetery,  in  his  own  Spring- 
field. On  the  4th  day  of  May,  1865,  they  laid  Mm  to  rest,  and  over 
him  they  built  a  great  shaft,  enduring — but  not  as  enduring  as  his 
immortal  fame.     In  the  language  of  Judge  Malone: 

"A  blend  of  mirth  and  sadness,  smiles  and  tears, 
A  quaint  knight-errant  of  the  pioneers, 
A  homely  hero,  born  of  star  and  sod, 
A  peasant  prince — a  masterpiece  of  God." 

There  is  one  instance  in  my  uneventful  life  which  I  shall  never 
forget  and  that  is  when  I  sat  at  breakfast  one  morning  lin  a  city  of 
the  southwest  and  heard  the  bells  ringing  the  birth  of  a  new  state. 
I  said  to  myself,  "Ring  for  the  old,  ring  for  the  new,  ring  for  the 
Union."  That  day  a  state  was  born,  and  took  her  place  with  the 
united  country  which  Lincoln  died  for  saving — the  man  who  bore 
the  mission  from  God  on  high,  when  he  said  "A  house  divided  against 
itself  cannot  stand;  this  nation  cannot  exist  half  slave  and  half 
free,"  wMch  goes  sounding  down  through  the  corridors  of  time  with 
that  other  immortal  Revolutionary  battle  cry  of  Patrick  Henry,  "Give 
me  liberty  or  give  me   death." 

19 


''!^W^t^ 


UNIVERSITY  OF  ILLINOIS-URBANA 

973.7L63GH39A  C002 

ABRAHAM  LINCOLN  TERRE  HAUTE 


3  0112  031819144 


